Ground engineering contractor Van Elle has revealed a drop in revenue for the first half of its financial year, blaming challenging market conditions in all sectors.
Van Elle said its turnover was down 5 per cent at £65m for the six months to 31 October 2024. This compares to £68m for the same period last year.
A statement from the firm, issued to investors on Thursday (12 December), said rail work had been subdued due to the start of control period 7 (CP7), which began in April.
In addition, Highways projects continued to be affected by delays.
The update also added: “The impact of the Building Safety Act has caused delays to start dates of taller residential schemes. However, encouragingly, the new-build housing sector has continued to recover.”
The firm said it had made progress in developing a strong position in the water and energy sectors during the reporting period. A contract win in Canada worth CAD$9m (£5m) for renewals was pinpointed as a success for the firm.
It also said that the acquisition of Scottish piling and drilling specialist Albion in October this year for up to £3.5m had been a success.
Van Elle said the deal “provides additional momentum in Scotland, where new contracts in the energy sector have been awarded for commencement in Q4 FY2025”. Albion’s trading post completion is “in line” with pre-acquisition expectations.
The order book for Van Elle has increased from £35.1m at the end of April to £41.6m, including £1.4m from the acquisition of Albion.
Pre-tax profit for the six months to 31 October 2024 will be announced in January.
In July this year, the Nottinghamshire-based contractor tabled a pre-tax profit of £5.6m for the year to 30 April 2024, slightly up on the £5.4m it posted the year before.
Looking ahead, the firm said it “anticipates profitability being second-half weighted.”
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Chris Smith